Pill bug as herp food?

[Lepisosteus platyrhincus]

Been trying to feed my 5 line native stuff that I find and crickets are getting hard to find small enough. Pill bugs are a plenty atm. Are these herp safe?

 

[paul112]

I've heard of people using them for leopard geckos and such. Very high in calcium from what I remember, should be fine if the lizard will eat them

Best,
Paul

 

[Lepisosteus platyrhincus]

Ok. I put a few in and it chased them down. Never saw it grab it but it was interested

 

[ozz465]

tried this myself and were fine , just for safety concerns regarding parasites wait till they form a larger colony and use the babies as a base for a feedable colony .

 

[Vicious_Fish]

Yep, they're safe to use if taken from an area that wasn't sprayed with pesticides/herbicides.

 

[Tropicalfish34]

Yep, they're safe to use if taken from an area that wasn't sprayed with pesticides/herbicides.

Thats true but like ozz485 said wait until you have establised a colony.

 

[coura]

Dont use to often, they can sometimes be hard to digest. Wont replace insects for shure.

 

[docturtle91b]

I started a colony of them in a small tupperware shoe box. That way I could gut load them how I choose to. They make an excellent addition to any small herp/fish diet just so not used as a staple. Have you thought about young cockroaches (like hissers, lobster roaches, etc). Additionally, you can take a net with small holes and sweep through taller grass in a healthy area (no pest/herb other cides). This way you end up getting a myriad of invertebrates that you can pick from. Just a few thoughts from an old herper.

 

[fishfreak2009]

I raise them in a shoe box under one of my tanks, along with a shoebox mealworm colony (around 600 mealworms before I harvest to feed). They seem to make great feeders for anything that will eat them. My toads and cichlids seem to really love them, and when I had a praying mantis, he enjoyed them as well.